Token walkout: Opposition threatens parallel Senate sitting
Members blame federal and provincial governments for dire security situation.
Members of the Opposition in the Senate. PHOTO: ONLINE
ISLAMABAD:
Opposition groups in the Senate staged a token walkout on Friday, protesting against the attack on a religious congregation in Peshawar and against the absence of ministers from the House.
The senators offered condolences over the death of the people in the Peshawar blast and the 17 children who lost their lives in a tragic accident in Nawabshah.
Condemning the increase in incidents of violence, lawmakers criticised both the federal government and the PTI-led provincial government of Khyber-Pakhtunkhawa, for the worsening law and order situation in the province.
Legislators also expressed dismay over the absence of ministers from the house. The opposition also warned of staging a parallel session outside parliament if the ministers did not take the in-house session seriously.
The opposition, including senators from ANP, MQM and PPP, then staged a walkout from the house but later rejoined the proceedings and denounced the unending trend of the terrorism.
Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan, Leader of opposition in Senate, said ministers did not take the upper house seriously. “If the ministers continue to ignore the upper house we will be compelled to boycott the house and hold parallel proceedings outside the House”.
Former Interior Minister Rehman Malik said it seemed that foreign elements were involved in terrorism in the country. He suggested that the DG Inter Service Intelligence and the DG Intelligence Bureau brief the upper house on the current security situation in an in-camera session.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 18th, 2014.
Opposition groups in the Senate staged a token walkout on Friday, protesting against the attack on a religious congregation in Peshawar and against the absence of ministers from the House.
The senators offered condolences over the death of the people in the Peshawar blast and the 17 children who lost their lives in a tragic accident in Nawabshah.
Condemning the increase in incidents of violence, lawmakers criticised both the federal government and the PTI-led provincial government of Khyber-Pakhtunkhawa, for the worsening law and order situation in the province.
Legislators also expressed dismay over the absence of ministers from the house. The opposition also warned of staging a parallel session outside parliament if the ministers did not take the in-house session seriously.
The opposition, including senators from ANP, MQM and PPP, then staged a walkout from the house but later rejoined the proceedings and denounced the unending trend of the terrorism.
Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan, Leader of opposition in Senate, said ministers did not take the upper house seriously. “If the ministers continue to ignore the upper house we will be compelled to boycott the house and hold parallel proceedings outside the House”.
Former Interior Minister Rehman Malik said it seemed that foreign elements were involved in terrorism in the country. He suggested that the DG Inter Service Intelligence and the DG Intelligence Bureau brief the upper house on the current security situation in an in-camera session.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 18th, 2014.